1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image pickup apparatus, a computer readable recording medium and a method for preparing an audio file.
2. Related Background Art
FIG. 13 is a rear view of a conventional electronic camera provided with audio information recording function, wherein shown are a view finder 21 for confirming the object or the image to be recorded; a shutter button 105 for instructing image recording to the camera; a recording button 106 for instructing audio information recording to the camera; and a microphone 107 for fetching the voice.
When the shutter button 105 is depressed, the electronic camera captures the image displayed on the view finder 21 and stores it as a file in a memory device in the electronic camera.
Also, by speaking into the microphones 107 during depression of the recording button 106, audio information can be stored as a file in the memory device of the electronic camera. The recording of the audio information is terminated when the recording button 106 is released.
The audio information is recorded as complementary information to the most recently recorded image. Audio information cannot be recorded in a state in which no image has been captured.
A new file is prepared in two cases, namely:
1) when image data is captured by the depression of the shutter button; and
2) when audio data is captured by the depression of the recording button.
The image file name has xe2x80x9cjpgxe2x80x9d as a suffix accompanying the final dot xe2x80x9c.xe2x80x9d, while the audio file name has xe2x80x9cwavxe2x80x9d as a suffix.
In the following there will be explained steps 30-37 in FIG. 11. At first a step 30 initializes the variable FileNo, by searching the files stored in a memory device 104 and employing the largest value of the prefixes of the stored image files. For example, if the memory device 104 stores five files, 1.jpg, 2.jpg, 3.jpg, 3.wav and 4.jpg, the variable FileNo is initialized to xe2x80x9c4xe2x80x9d. If no image files are stored, it is initialized to xe2x80x9c0xe2x80x9d. The method of searching the files stored in the memory device is already well known and will not be explained in detail.
Then a step 31 executes an increment of the variable FileNo by one. Then a step 32 discriminates whether the file to be prepared is an audio file or an image file, and, in the case of an image file, a step 33 prepares an image file with a file name File No. jpg. On the other hand, if the file to be prepared is an audio file, a step 34 judges the value of the file number in order to discriminate whether any image file has been prepared, and, if the value of the file number is xe2x80x9c1xe2x80x9d, indicating that no image has been captured, the audio file is not prepared but the sequence proceeds to a step 37 to terminate the process. On the other hand, if an image already has been captured, a step 35 prepares an audio file with a file name FileNo.wav. The prepared file is registered in a management file in a step 36.
In summary, in the above-described flow, a new file is prepared in response to every capture of image or audio data and the prepared file is registered in the management file. The management file indicates the image file to which each audio file is complementary.
FIG. 12 is a flow chart showing the procedure of registration into the management file.
The management file contains the file name of an image file and the name of the audio file which is complementary information to the image file. The management file is represented by a name such as 1.ctg or 2.ctg, in which the suffix ctg is an identifier indicating a management file.
Referring to FIG. 12, a step 40 at first initializes a variable CtgNo by searching the files stored in the memory device 104 and employing the largest value of the prefixes of the stored management files. For example if the memory device 104 contains four files 1.ctg, 2.ctg, 3.ctg and 4.ctg, the variable FileNo is initialized to xe2x80x9c4xe2x80x9d. If no management file has been recorded, it is initialized to xe2x80x9c0xe2x80x9d.
Then a step 41 discriminates whether the file to be registered is an audio file or an image file, and, if it is an image file, a step 42 executes an increment of the value of the variable CtgNo by one. The variable CtgNo has an initial value xe2x80x9c0xe2x80x9d. Then a step 43 prepares a management file with a name xe2x80x9cCtgNo.ctgxe2x80x9d and registers the image file name in thus prepared management file xe2x80x9cCtgNo.ctgxe2x80x9d. If the step 41 identifies that the file to be registered is an audio file, a step 45 registers the audio file name in the management file xe2x80x9cCtgNo.ctgxe2x80x9d. In the management file there are registered an image file name and the name of an audio file which is prepared within a period from the preparation of an image file to the immediately succeeding preparation of another image file.
In a conventional electronic camera, if an image is recorded by depression of the shutter button in a state without any recorded information in the memory device, and voice is thereafter recorded three times in succession as complementary information for the recorded image, there are prepared four image/audio files which are 1.jpg, 2.wav, 3.wav and 4.wav, and a management file 1.ctg. The management file 1.ctg registers four file names, i.e., the image file 1.jpg and the three audio files 2.wav, 3.wav and 4.wav, and 4.wav as complementary information files to the image file 1 jpg.
In the conventional configuration explained in the foregoing, a new file is prepared for every audio recording, and plural audio files may be prepared as the complementary information to an image file.
The preparation of a new audio file for every recording of audio information in the conventional art results in a drawback in that a number of audio files are prepared. Also, there results a drawback in that plural audio files are prepared as complementary information to a single image.
As a result, in order to enable satisfactory reproduction of the audio information relative to the image, there has to be prepared a link management file which contains information indicating the correspondence between the audio files and the image file.
Also, in the case of erasing an image file, there is required a cumbersome procedure, as the link management file has to be referred to at the time of erasure of the audio file.
Also, in case of searching audio files recorded in a computer readable recoding medium, for example, at a renewal time, the link management file has to be referred to in order to identify the image to which the searched audio files are complementary or to identify the presence or absence of other audio files constituting complementary information to the image to which the searched audio files are complementary.
An object of the present invention is to provide an image pickup device, a computer readable recording medium and an audio file preparing method which solve the aforementioned drawbacks.
The above-mentioned object can be attained, according to the present invention, by an image pickup apparatus capable of recording image information and audio information, entered from audio input means, where the apparatus comprises:
audio file preparing means for executing a process of preparing an audio file containing the above-mentioned entered audio information and causing memory means to store such audio file; and
control means for adding, when new audio information is entered, such audio information to the stored audio file.
Another object of the present invention is to enable efficient preparation of an audio file corresponding to an image file.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an image pickup device, a computer readable recording medium and an audio file preparing method, enabling, at the deletion of an image file, easy deletion of the audio file corresponding to the image file.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an image pickup device, a computer readable recording medium and an audio file preparing method, having a novel function.
Still other objects of the present invention, and the features thereof, will become fully apparent from the following description which is to be taken in conjunction with the attached drawings.